Looking For Luka
by Kovacsgirl
Summary: Well, it's finished, and you'll never guess who done it!!!
1. A Late Night Phone Call

:I: 

:I: 

A Late Night Phone Call 

**_ _**

**_The following conversation was recorded at 02:68 at the Las Vegas Criminology Lab, May ninth, 2001_**

[Voice 1] Hello, Las Vegas CSI, can I help you? 

[Voice 2] Uh..hello. Can I speak to the head of the department? 

[V1] Gil Grissom? 

[V2] Uh...okay. 

[V1] I'm sorry, he's not in right now. 

[V2] Please! Is there anyone else I can talk too? 

[V1] There might be someone in, I'll see. 

---A Pause---

[V1] There is someone here still. Would you like me to put you through to her? 

[V2] Yes. 

---A Pause---

[Voice 3] Hello? 

[V2] Can you help me?

[V3] How? Who are you? 

[V2] Oh, I'm sorry. Abby Lockheart. 

[V3] Okay. I'm Tuesday Haskle.

[V2] I really need your help. 

[V3] I understand. What seems to be the problem?

[V2] Well...oh! 

---Muffled Sobs---

[V3] Please, Ms Lockheart. Can you tell me what the problem is? 

[V2] Yes... Well, I have a missing person to report. 

[V3] Ms. Lockheart, traditionally the Criminology lab does not deal with missing people...

[V2] Please! I have to find Luka! 

[V3] Luka? 

[V2] Luka Kovac. He is the missing person.

[V3] Can I put you through to the main line...

[V2] No! I have to talk to you. 

[V3] Uh...okay. Where are you calling from? 

[V2] Chicago.

[V3] Chicago, Illinois? Isn't that a bit far? Maybe you have the wrong number? 

[V2] No! 

[V3] Okay. Please explain your problem. 

[V2] Well, Luka was visiting Las Vegas for a few days, and he was supposed to return today, but he didn't. 

[V3] One moment. 

---A Pause---

[V3] Maybe the plane was late? 

[V2] No. I met the plane he was supposed to come in on and he wasn't there. 

[V3] Do you think he gave up his seat? 

[V2] No! 

[V3] Okay, Ms. Lockheart. First of all, I do not usually deal with missing persons. If I can get proof that there is some sort of foul play involved—

[V2] Foul Play!

[V3] Ms. Lockheart. Currently, it has not been twenty-four hours since his disappearance, correct?

[V2] I suppose. 

[V3] Okay. If he doesn't show up by the eleventh, I want you to call the police station, not the Criminology Lab. If you can't get through to them, call me. But, only **_IF_** you can't get through.  
  


[V2] Yes. What was your name again? 

[V3] Tuesday Haskle. Tuesday, like the day. H-A-S-K-L-E. 

[V2] Got it. 

[V3] Okay. Is that all? 

[V2] Yes, goodbye. 

[V3] Goodbye. 

---End of Phone Call---

Tuesday sighed, and leaned back at her desk. The call had been a strange one, and she wasn't happy about it all. She ran a hand through her hair. The woman hadn't sounded that old, but had been very frantic. She popped the taped conversation into a manila envelope and scribbled a note: 

Gris-

We working late, when I got this phone call. What do you make of it? Should we investigate? Write me a memo over it, I don't know if I'm coming in tomorrow. 

---Tuesday 

Tuesday plunked the envelope on Grissom's desk and left. She didn't give much thought to the phone call after that, just happy to sleep.


	2. Grissom's Decision

:II: 

:II: 

Grissom's Decision

The phone rang again for Tuesday at about five o'clock the next morning. 

"Hello?" 

"Tuesday? You sound like you just woke up. I hope I didn't wake you up..." It was Grissom. 

Tuesday sighed, shifting her weight onto her elbow. "Oh no, I always wake up at five in the morning, even if I got home at three the previous night." 

"Tuesday Haskle, what are we going to do with you?" A sigh. "I listened to the tape you left on my desk. I wanted to talk to you about it rather than write a memo." 

"And..." 

"Well, she sounded very distraught." 

"She was."

"I wanted to know what you though about it all." 

Tuesday sat up in bed, and her gray tabby cat, Noko jumped into her lab. She proceeded to purr very loudly, hoping to get Tuesday's attention. Tuesday pet the cat absent mindedly, thinking. 

"Well, I thought she was going a little overboard. Hm, well I guess she was being a little crazy, I mean everyone knows that you have to wait at least twenty-four hours before calling the police, and no one ever calls CSI. It's weird. She was also calling from Chicago. That would mean it was after four in the morning there, and that's a really strange time to be calling me. I shouldn't have even been in at two in the morning our time." Tuesday's words were interrupted with a yawn. 

Grissom took the opportunity to get in a few words. "Tuesday, I know you haven't gotten a whole lot of sleep, but it there any chance you can be in her by six?" 

Tuesday shrugged. "Sure. I'll be right over." 

----

"Did you hear about my phone call last night?" Tuesday asked Nick Stokes as she walked down the hall to her office.

"Who hasn't? It's been circulating around since I got here," Nick said. 

Tuesday sighed. "Of course. I just hope Gris doesn't want me to investigate it..." 

"What's this 'me'? Its always 'us' remember?"

Tuesday smiled softly. "I guess so. But just wait, he's going to come in...in five, four, three, two, one..." 

"Tuesday, can I impose on you again?" 

Nick glanced at Tuesday, who flashed him a satisfied smile as if to say _I told you so. _

Tuesday leaned back in her chair. "And what might that be Gris?" 

"Well, I was hoping that you and Nick would investigate this." 

Tuesday looked past Grissom to Nick, and lifted an eyebrow, asking him what he thought mentally. Nick shrugged and Tuesday looked back at Grissom. 

"Fine." 

"Great, I'll get you started right away. You know this means that you need to Chicago sooner or later." 

Tuesday nodded slowly. "Right." 

Grissom left and Tuesday and Nick were left in the office. 

"So, what's the game plan, Tues?" 

"Well we don't know anything about this woman, so how about we look her up on the people database that we got with that grant." 

"Sounds like an idea. Do you have on this computer?" 

"Yeah. They got it up last month. I'm thankful for that." She smiled and flipped the computer on. 

"Okay," Nick said when the program was up, "the name is Abby Lockheart." 

Tuesday typed in "LOCKHEART, ABBY," and 5,000 results turned up.

"Damn," they both muttered. 

"What's up?" Sara asked, wandering into Tuesday's office. 

"You heard about the 'crazy woman' who called up last night," Tuesday said, looking up from the screen. 

"Yeah..." 

"Well, we're trying to find out something about her. Want to join the search?" 

"I have nothing better to do. Sure." She perched on the radiator behind the desk. "Found anything yet?" 

"Only about a million Abby Lockhearts," Tuesday said. 

"5,000 to be exact," Nick added. 

"Wow." 

"Let's try searching just Chicago," Nick suggested. 

Everyone else in the room shrugged, and soon the next set of results had come up: 

LOCKHEART, ABIGAIL: AGE.3 

LOCKHEART, ABBY: AGE.27 STUDENT AT LOYOLA UNIVERSITY

LOCKHERT, ABBY: AGE.31 OB/ER NURSE AT COUNTY GENERAL HOSPITAL

LOCKHEART, ABIGAIL: AGE.76 WATER AROBICS TEACHER

---END OF PAGE---

"You know, the scary thing is, we could find anyone on here, and anyone could find us," Sara said. Nick and Tuesday nodded in agreement. 

"I heard the government scans everyone's e-mails to find words like espionage and bomb. If they find it they read it," Tuesday said. 

"Now that's scary," Nick said. "Which Abby do you think it is?" 

"Um, I'd say by the sound of the voice and the time she called it was the third one down. The OB nurse," Tuesday said. 

"What do you mean by the time of the call?" Sara asked. 

Tuesday shrugged. "Most college students don't have time to call about someone because of the studying. At least not a student at Loyola," she explained.

"Oh. Hey Nick, I want to see her bio."

"Got ya." He entered the biography.

LOCKHEART, ABBY WYSINSKI: AGE.31 A NURSE AT CHICAGO'S COUNTY GENERAL HOSPITAL. MARRIED FOR A SHORT TIME TO RICHARD LOCKHEART. NOW DIVORCED.

---END OF PAGE--- 

"Be interesting to see what they have to say about us," Tuesday said. "I think I'm going to pay a call to County General Hospital." 

-----

"County General ER, this is Randi, how can I help you?" 

"Hello, my name is Tuesday Haskle, and last night I received a call from Ms. Abby Lockheart. Is she here by any chance?" 

"I'll go see." 

Tuesday put the phone on speaker so Nick and Sara could hear. 

"Miss Haskle?" 

"Yes?" 

"Abby is here, I'll put her on the line." 

"Thank-you." Tuesday waited for another minute before the familiar voice from last night was heard.

"Hello?" 

"Abby Lockheart? This is Tuesday Haskle." 

"Have you found Luka!?" 

"No. But, we are going to do a formal investigation. Could you possibly explain to us why Luka was in Vegas?" 

A sigh, then a gulp. The woman was obviously fighting back tears. "Well...uh. He went there for a convention. An emergency medicine convention. Doctor Weaver – the head of emergency services here – was going to go, but she had a commitment to attend at the last minute." 

"What kind of commitment?" 

"Uh, a wedding for two staff members. Anyway, he went to this convention and he never came back."

"Where was he staying?" 

"Two days at the Hyatt Regency. The rest of the time at the MGM Grand, where the convention was held." 

"How long was 'the rest of the time?'"

"Four days." 

"Mmmm. Thank-you for your help Ms. Lockheart. It will be valuable in our investigation." 

"I'd do anything for Luka." 

The conversation ended and Tuesday turned to the other CSIs. "I think we're going to need more than just Nick and I on this case." 

-----

"Gris? Can I see you for a second?" Tuesday asked, sticking her head into Grissom's office. 

"Sure, what do you need?"

"Well, I was wondering if I could get some other people to help out on this case. I know you and Cath are busy right now, but maybe Sara and Warric?" 

"Why?" 

"Well, I just called Abby back, and Nick and I need to go to Chicago as you foresaw. But, we need someone to investigate such things as the Medical convention Dr. Kovac was at, as well as the hotels he occupied. Do you think I can get them to help?" 

Grissom surveyed the situation. He knew Sara and Warric could be doing better things, but on the other hand, they might just be needed for the case. He smiled. "Sure, but only if you and Nick go to Chicago tonight." 

-----

"Flight 372 is now arriving at Chicago O'Hare International Airport. Please remain seated until the aircraft has come to a full and complete stop, then you may unfasten your seat belts, and remove things from the overhead bins. Please remember that items may shift during flight and be careful. Thank-you for flying Delta airlines and we hope to see you very soon." 

Nick and Tuesday stepped out of the plane, and down the walkway to the airport. Wordlessly, they gathered their baggage and walked outside to catch a taxi. Tuesday glanced around. She had never been to the city before. 

"So this is Chicago." 

AUTHOR'S NOTE: I CREATED THE 'PEOPLE INDEX'. I KNOW SOMETHING LIKE THAT EXSISTS, BUT NOT EXACTLY LIKE THAT. SO PLEASE DON'T TELL ME THAT THINGY COULDN'T EXSIST!!!!


	3. The Investigation Begins

:III:

:III:

The Investigation Begins

That night, it had taken Tuesday a very long time to fall asleep. First, she called Grissom up to tell him that they had arrived in Chicago on time and gotten adjoining rooms at the Hyatt Regency Chicago. Next, she had called her mother in Boston, who demanded she know about all of her daughter's travels since she left Boston. Then, she planned out the next few days. And finally, after a hot shower, curled up in bed. 

-----

There it was again. The fear. The intense fear. His voice. The cold, round cylinder of the gun against her head. His violating touch. And again...again...again... His breath: the vile, foul stench of alcohol. He dropped the gun in his drunken stupor, but still fired. The sting. The fiery, burning, excruciating pain that spread out from the impact. Falling...falling...falling... The distorted sounds of the ambulance, the far-away sounds of her own screams...

Tuesday woke up screaming. Her body was bathed in sweat and shaking. Her breath has haggard, and her whole body ached. 

_Oh my god, my god, what is going on? _Her mind screamed, but her voice couldn't create the sounds. _Maybe I ate something weird, _she thought. _Nick told me not to get the prime rib... _

She was scared. She had only been this scared before once in her life. Back in Boston... 

Her stomach lurched, and she ran into the bathroom. Her face was whiter than the sheets she had been sleeping on. Her heart hammered in her chest, and she could barely breathe.

_What the hell is going on? Oh my god, I'm dying. _She tried walking back to her bed, but collapsed on the floor. Involuntarily, she curled into a fetal position, shaking harder then ever. 

She wanted to scream. To get someone's attention. Maybe if she could get to the phone, she could call for help... 

The shaking was getting worse. _Help me! _She contracted in a bizarre spasm, as another wave of pain washed over her. She screamed. As loud as she could manage before the pain returned and contracted her throat. 

"Tuesday?" It was Nick. 

_Oh my god, Nick help me! I'm dying._ The pain stayed, throbbing through her body. Her heart pounded against her legs. Wild thoughts raced across her mind. 

_This is all Josh's fault; he cursed me. _

_He poisoned me_

_He's coming back to kill me. _

__The fact that he was still in jail in Las Vegas never crossed her mind. She felt someone lean over her, and place a hand on her shoulder. 

The pain slowly disintegrated, but the shivers didn't. "No! Leave me alone, you bastard. You can't hurt me again!" she screamed, trying to squirm out of touch. "No!"

"Tuesday, Tuesday! Calm down!" 

The voice was soft, calming, familiar. Slowly, Tuesday stopped moving, so only her body was shaking, as it had been for the last five or ten minutes. 

"Tuesday, what happened?" 

Tuesday opened her eyes to see Nick leaning over her, worry etched all over his face. Tears started to come, flowing down her cheeks. 

"It was him... He tried to kill me," she muttered, tears splashing on her hands. 

"Who?" 

"Josh..." 

"Josh Camillati?" Nick couldn't help the disdain in his voice. Josh Camillati had been Tuesday's boyfriend back in Boston. She had dumped him because he had been abusing her and came to work in Vegas. He had followed her; however, and started a string of gruesome serial killings, all because he wanted to kill Tuesday. But now, Josh was in prison in Las Vegas. 

Tuesday nodded. "He...he shot me." 

Nick was taken aback. This was new information. Tuesday was still shaking in his arms, and tears ran down her cheeks. "When?" 

"In Boston... He was upset that we broke up. He was drunk, and would have blown my head off if he were sober. He shot me in the back instead..." She began crying even harder at the memory of the attack. 

"Why didn't you tell us?" Nick hated Josh even more now. He hated that he had touched Tuesday that he had tried to kill her twice, and that he had no respect for her at all. Nick gently kissed the top of Tuesday's head. "You're safe now. Don't worry." 

He knew Tuesday had had an anxiety attack, and that worried him. She had seemed so normal before, what had sent her into a stress overload like this? 

-----

"I can't believe we got stuck doing this," Warric muttered. He was with Sara, getting out of the car at the Hyatt Regency. 

"I know, but we have nothing better to do," Sara insisted.

Warric rolled his eyes as they approached the front desk. 

"Hi. I'm Jessie. Welcome to The Las Vegas Hyatt Regency." A young woman easily younger than both Warric and Sara met them. She had a sickeningly high and cheerful voice. "Do you have a reservation?"

"No... We're from the Crime lab. We're looking for information on Doctor Luka Kovac." 

"CSI does missing people?" the voice said laughing. 

Warric glanced back at Sara. "Just wait 'til I get my hands on Tuesday when she gets back..." Turning again to the girl behind the desk, he said, "Uh, well this is a special case. Could you please give me the dates that Luka Kovac checked in and checked out of your hotel?" 

"Uh, one minute... How do you spell that?" 

"L-U-K-A K-O-V-A-C." 

"Okay." The girl ran to a back room and within a few minutes returned.

"Okay, Doctor Kovac arrived at the hotel at 4:34 p.m. on May third. He checked out two days later at 11:06 a.m. on May fifth. Anything else?" 

"No. Thank-you for your help." The two CSIs wandered to where several couches and chairs had been arranged to for some sort of a waiting area. 

"Well, that helped a lot," Warrick grumbled. 

"At least we know that he left the Hyatt," Sara pointed out. "Wait a minute!" She ran back to the counter. "Jessie?" 

"Yes'm?"

"Was there any evidence of a struggle or something in his hotel room?" 

"No." 

"Damnit," she muttered under her breath, and returned to where Warric was sitting. "On to the MGM Grand."

-----

"Doctor Romano, there are two people to see you," a chipper secretary poked her head into Romano's office. 

He sighed in annoyance. It was probably that Malatuchi guy wanting another raise. "Send them in." 

Enter two people, a man and a woman, both dressed in relatively dark clothes. They were unfamiliar. Maybe the new med students. 

"What do you want?" he snapped, he wasn't in a good mood. 

"My name is Nick Stokes, and this is Tuesday Haskle. We're here to investigate the disappearance of Luka Kovac. I believe he works in your ER." 

"Kovac's missing? Sit down." 

The two complied and the woman spoke. "Could you please tell us a little about Doctor Kovac?" She spoke with an obvious Bostonian accent. 

"Are you two from Boston?" Romano asked. Why the hell was Luka in Boston? 

"Las Vegas," Nick said shortly. 

"Oh." That didn't make any more sense than Boston. "You want to know about Luka? Well, I don't know him very well. Uh, he came he last year as a temp in replacement for some old guy that Kerry hired. I guess Kerry like how he worked, 'cause she kept him on. He's from Croatia." 

"So he's foreign?" Tuesday asked. 

"Yeah... Uh, I think he killed someone – they tried to mug him or something – and he skipped a couple of workdays because of it... That's all I can tell you."

"What's his relationship to Abby Lockheart?" Tuesday asked. 

"Who?" 

Nick exchanged a glance with Tuesday and nodded. "Thank-you. That's all." He and Tuesday got up and left. 

"That was informative," he griped, walking to the elevator. 

"Well, we found out that he's foreign. He could have had a political enemy that wanted him dead," Tuesday hypothesized. 

"But we don't know if he's dead," Nick pointed out. 

"Of course...think that Romano dude could have something against him?" 

"He seemed pretty nonplused. I don't think he has anything against him." 

The elevator arrived at the ER. 

"I guess we need to find Abby Lockheart," Tuesday said, as they left the elevator. They walked up to the front desk and inquired about Abby. Soon, a young woman in her early thirties walked up to them. Her dark hair was cut to a little above her shoulders and she wore nurse's scrubs. 

"Are you Tuesday Haskle?" She asked, slightly disappointed to see Tuesday. She was relatively short, especially in comparison to the man standing next to her. Her auburn hair was cut to just below her ears and feathered, slightly. Her features were a bit European, oddly, and her voice didn't match them. 

Tuesday smiled. "Yes. This is Nick Stokes. He's majorly helping with this investigation. You must be Abby Lockheart." 

"Yes." 

"Great. Is there anywhere we can go so we can ask a few questions?" Tuesday glanced around. Unlike many of the ERs one sees on television, this one was fairly quiet, with doctors milling around, playing on the computer or filling out charts. 

"Uh, the only place I can think of are the chairs here," she said, motioning to several plastic chairs creating a waiting area. The trio sat down. "What do you want to know? You know, it was really great for you two to come practically across the country to help me out."

Tuesday smiled, but said nothing. "Well, first of all, we want to know what your relationship to Luka is. It would be most helpful." 

"Oh, we were...are dating. Since oh, I don't remember, October maybe September." 

"Describe Luka," Nick said. 

"Um, well he can be sultry, and at other times, so romantic." She smiled crookedly. 

"Has anything come up recently that might set someone at odds with him?" 

"Well, he's been kinda jealous of Carter recently, because he thinks I'm going to go date him." 

"Carter?" 

"John Carter. He's one of the doctors here." 

"I see" Tuesday glanced at Nick. "Any thing else?" 

"Well, he was having a spiritual crisis because of a priest he saw as a patient. He got really sulky for a while because he accidentally killed a man who tried to attack us." 

Another exchange of glances. 

"But...oh, I don't know. I don't think there was anyone who would really dislike him." 

"Could you point out Kerry Weaver for us please?"

-----

Sara felt like putting a leash on Warric as they walked into the MGM Grand. She had only been in there once, when a cousin had a wedding there, and the one thing that stuck in her mind was the size of the casino. 

As if he could read her mind, Warric glanced back at her. "I'm sticking close to you, don't worry." 

Sara nodded but said nothing. "I'll let you do the talking again."

"Yes?" The man at the front desk was an elderly man, and his voice was less ear splitting than the girl's at the Hyatt.

"We're from the Crime Lab and were looking for information on one of your guests," Warric said. 

The man pulled a large binder out from under the counter. "Which one?" 

"Luka Kovac?" 

"Oh, yes. Such a nice man. Left large tips too. He was here for that convention, but the funny thing was, he left early." 

"Early?" Warric frowned, glancing at Sara. "How early?" 

"Only a day. He came on the fifth and left on the eighth," he said flipping open the binder, and glancing through it quickly. "Left with a rather attractive woman. I only got a quick glance at her." 

"What did she look like?" 

"Brunette. That's all I remember." 

A expression flashed over Sara's face, as if she had just had an epiphany. Warric half expected her to shout 'Eureka!' 

"Would you recognize her if you saw a picture of her?" she asked. 

"Probably." 

"Can I get your name?" Sara asked again. 

"Mel Thompson."

"Thank-you." Sara and Warric walked off. 

"You have a plan," Warric said.

"Yup. I'm going to get Tuesday to e-mail me all the pictures of the women who work at that hospital's ER. I think it was one of them."


	4. The Chicago-Vegas Correspodance

:IV:

:IV:

The Chicago-Vegas Correspondence

FROM: Tuesday Haskle gummibear007@yahoo.com

DATE: May 13th 2000 20:47

TO: Sara Sidel [sunnie_sara19@hotmail.com][1]

SUBJECT: Looking For Luka

_Sara-_

_How is your investigation going? I hope better than ours. No, its not that we don't have any leads, its that we have way too many! First of all, about Luka. _

_So, Luka is from Croatia, and arrived at C.G. last year. He seemed to be doing fine, except that he missed a couple days and has a seemingly unsteady emotional balance. According to Lockheart, he killed someone. Overall though, no-one had a complaint. _

_Now, this convention._

"May I join you?" 

Tuesday looked up from the e-mail she was writing to see a tall, handsome man looking intently back at her. "Uh, yeah." She swung her legs off the other seat in front of her. 

"You're one of those CSIs who are looking for Kovac, aren't you? Let me introduce myself. John Carter." 

"Oh." So _this _was John Carter. "Tuesday Haskle. That's right. I'm investigating this case." She decidedly left out _reluctantly_.

"Isn't there a guy with you?" 

"Yeah, Nick. He's off making a phone call." Tuesday glanced apprehensively around the small restaurant. _Where exactly WAS Nick? _

"Found anything out?" he asked, trying to get a look at Tuesday's computer screen. 

She snapped it shut. "Some stuff." 

"Like..." 

"That's classified information." Tuesday said this with a relish. 

"I see." Obviously he didn't. 

"I have a question for you," she began, and not waiting for a reply said, "what is your relationship with Abby Lockheart like?" 

The walls went up. "We're just friends." 

"Mm-hm. Dr. Carter I've been in this business long enough to know that you are definitely more than friends when you treat the question like it was a murder weapon." 

"Okay, fine. Abby often discusses her 'problems' with me, and for a while she was my sponsor at the AA meetings..."

"You're a recovering alcoholic?" 

"She is. I was a drug addict." 

"Oh. Are you romantically involved?" 

"I wish." 

"I see." Tuesday tried to cover a grin, and turned back to her e-mail.

_Now, this convention. Apparently, Dr. Kerry Weaver – the head of the ER – was supposed to go to it. But, a last minute invitation to the wedding of two hospital employees caused her to need someone else to go. Dr. Kovac volunteered and bang: last time anyone saw Luka. _

_Here's a list of all the motives anyone had: _

_**ABBY LOCKHEART: It seems our little Abby is involved with more than one guy. She also has a crush – if you want to call it that – on Dr. Carter, another ER physician. Could she want Kovac out of the picture? _

_**KERRY WEAVER: Kovac is relatively aware of her sexual "preference." Wouldn't you want to keep that under wraps if your job was at stake?_

_**JOHN CARTER: Carter is Lockheart's newest love interest. He would want to get rid of Kovac to have Lockheart. Could he be working w/her? _

_**PETER BENTON: He got into a fight w/Kovac last May. But grudges run high in this hospital. Could Benton want Kovac out of the way so he could gain more status? _

_**ROBERT ROMANO: He's nasty. Who knows what he might do? _

_That's all we found out. _

_---Tuesday_

_=======_

_Keep it Simple Stupid_

-----

Nick was actually in Dr. Weaver's office, one thing on his mind. He was thankful that Weaver had allowed him to use her telephone. He called up Vegas. 

"Hello?" 

It was Catherine.

"Hey, Cath? It's Nick." 

"Oh, hey Nick. What's up?" 

"Well, I was actually hoping I could speak with Gris..." 

"Sorry Nick. Grissom is out investigating a new murder. Can I help you?" 

Nick sighed, silently cursing the new murder. "Uh, well maybe. It's about Tuesday." 

"Oh?" 

"Well, last night she had a major anxiety attack." 

"Tuesday? Our Tuesday?" 

"Yeah. It was really freaky. She was screaming and totally out of it. She even thought I was Josh Camillati." 

"That guy who we booked on those serial killings? Wasn't that her boyfriend in Boston?" 

"Yeah. Turns out he shot her while in Boston. I guess something triggered the attack." 

"That is really weird. I don't know what to say. You're in direct contact with a hospital... Try to get her to get therapy." 

"You think that will work?" 

"It's worth a ty--- Oh Greg!" 

"What?" 

"Greg must be high or something. He's running around in his birthday suit." 

"That makes him high?" 

Catherine laughed. "I have to go Nick. Good Luck."

Nick sighed. "Thanks. I'll need it."

-----

FROM: Sara Sidel [sunnie_sara19@hotmail.com][1]

DATE: May 14th 2000 09:16

TO: Tuesday Haskle gummibear007@yahoo.com

SUBJECT: RE: Looking For Luka

_Tuesday—_

_Wow, you're right you do have a ton of stuff to deal with! I think I can help you narrow down some of the suspects though. _

_Warric and I want to The Hyatt and found nothing. Everything went a planned. But, we found out something very weird at the MGM Grand. According to the front desk guy, Kovac left the hotel two days early. With a brunette. So, what I want you to do is send me pictures of all the women at the ER. From there, Warric and I will be able to figure out who the culprit is._

_Good Luck with the rest of the investigation! _

_--Sara _

_=====_

_"A girl's gotta eat sometime!" _

_ _

Tuesday sighed, glancing at the e-mail. Why did she feel that she was back where she started?

   [1]: mailto:sunnie_sara19@hotmail.com



	5. H is for Help

:V: 

:V: 

"H" is for Help 

**Conversations taped, May 15th 2001. **

** **

**---05:09---**

[V1] I heard you said something to that detective. What the hell?! Do you want to get us caught? 

[V2] The element of suspense. Let's tease them for a while. We'll be out of here before they can catch us. 

[V1] But why? There's the risk that they may solve it! They caught that serial killer you know. 

[V2] Well, that's your fault. Plus their minds aren't fully on this case. 

[V1] Why? 

[V2] I heard the guy talking on the phone to Vegas. The girl has posttraumatic. 

[V1] What? 

[V2] Come on! Post Traumatic Stress Disorder. He's going to urge her to get therapy. They'll be too busy with their precious Tuesday to catch us. We'll be to Switzerland before they know what hit them.They'll be too busy with their precious Tuesday to catch us. We'll be to Switzerland before they know what hit them. 

[V1] Don't tell me you bugged Kerry's phone!?! 

[V2] Yup. Can't be too cautious if she might catch on...

[V1] You... Oh, Kerry will kill us if she finds out! 

[V2] No, we'll kill her. 

[V1] This was never meant to be such a fiasco. Oh Damnit. Why are we doing this? 

[V2] Money. This was your idea. 

[V1] But...

[V2] Getting Vegas involved was your idea too. You couldn't have done any of this without me. But, it seems that I can't support your demands...

[V1] What!? You said...

[V2] You'll get your money. Don't worry. 

[V1] But you said---

[V2] Wait. I can't support you, but that doesn't mean someone else won't help me. 

[V1] I'm not following you...

[V2] Who is the richest employee here? 

[V1] John... Oh, no! I let you use Luka, but not John too. Oh God, you're not serious...

[V2] Dead. 

[V1] No! I'll tell everything tomorrow. 

[V2] You do, and I will see to it that Kovac never sees you or anyone ever again.

---gasps---

[V1] You wouldn't! 

[V2] I would. 

[V1] You've lost it!

[V2] Watch your mouth. The noose tightens with every word. 

[V1] You're crazy, not Miss. Haskle! 

---V1 slams the phone down---

---Conversation ends---

**---06:15---**

[V1] Earl?

[V2] Boss? 

[V1] Yup. 

[V2] Did the canary sing? 

[V1] She will. 

[V2] Well? 

[V1] Give him the ax. And make sure they can find him. 

[V2] Got it boss. 

[V1] Earl? 

[V2] Yeah boss? 

[V1] Expect a large bonus at Christmas. 

[V2] Oh, thank-you sir...

[V1] Now get your ass in gear and don't disappoint me. 

[V2] Yes sir. 

---Conversation ends---

-----

"I think you should see the hospital psychiatrist."

Tuesday choked on her coffee. She was sitting with Nick at the café near the hospital. "What did you say?" 

"You need to see someone about that anxiety attack." Nick set down his coffee cup. 

Tuesday rolled her eyes. "What anxiety attack?"

"Tuesday, I'm serious. Catherine thinks you should too!" 

Tuesday choked on another mouthful of coffee. 

"Give me that." Nick grabbed her coffee mug and set it down next to his. 

"You called Catherine?!" 

"Yes." 

"Great. I'm screwed." 

"Look Tuesday, if you have nothing to worry about, then the shrink will tell you that. Do it for precaution." 

Tuesday sighed. "You win..." 

She was about to say more when one of the doctors – Jing-Me Chen – ran up to them. 

"John Carter! He's missing!"

-----

Nick and Tuesday ran back over to the hospital. 

"This is the final straw, Nick. We have to find the culprit." Tuesday sighed. 

Nick just nodded as Jing-Me led them into the Doctor's Lounge. Kerry glanced up at them. 

"He just didn't show up today, and his grandparents said he didn't came home last night." 

"I think whoever got Luka got Carter," Dave Malucci exclaimed, a look of pure "I know it all" on his face and his arms folded over his chest. 

"Could be," Nick said, glancing back at Tuesday. 

Tuesday meanwhile, eyes raking about the room studied every single face. Everyone's eyes were on her and Nick, as if the held the explanation for all this and could easily tell them where Dr. Carter was, as well and Dr. Kovac. Her gaze settled on Abby, who looked away from her. 

"Abby, did you see Dr. Carter yesterday?" she asked. It was like you see on TV, as the rest of the staff turned to look at the nurse. 

"NO!" she screamed and ran from the room. 

"She's guilty!" Dave yelped, pointing at Abby's retreating figure. 

Deb slapped him upside the head with her clipboard. "She was close to Carter, Dave. Remember, point one finger and there are three pointing back at you." 

"What?" 

Nick and Tuesday exchanged annoyed glances and Tuesday turned to Kerry. She sighed. 

"Uh, Dr. Weaver? What is the name of the head psychiatrist here?" she asked, deciding not to go into detail. 

"Well, there's Kim Legaspi and Dr. Deraad." 

Tuesday nodded and left the room.

-----

"Do you recognize a of these women?" Sara asked, spreading several pictures in front of the elderly desk keeper of the MGM Grand. The Polaroid shots were vague, and Tuesday had needed an old instant photo camera to take them. She had made a point that the department would be paying for the overnight shipping costs. 

"Hmmmm..." Mel flipped through the pictures numerous times. Finally, he handed one to Sara. 

Warric glanced at the picture over her shoulder. 

"That's her?" 

"Yup. I'm sure." 

Warric nodded as Sara collected the pictures. 

"Thank-you. Your help has been most appreciated." The two left. 

"She didn't tell you who they were did she?" 

Sara shook her head. "I guess she wanted it to be like when you pick out a criminal in a lineup." 

"That certainly sounds like Tuesday."

At that moment both their phones rang. 

"Sara? Warric?" It was Grissom. 

"Yes?" 

"You guys better get down here right away..." 

"Why?" Sara's voice was about as worried as Grissom's. 

"I think we just found your missing person..." 

-----

"Okay, Nick. You wanted me to go see a shrink, so I am. But that also means that you have to do something for me too." 

"What?" They were in an elevator, heading up to the psych unit. 

"I think I might have an idea of what is going on. But I need you to do some undercover work for me," Tuesday explained. "I want you to look into a few people's lives. Here, I made out a list. Meet me at Navy Pier in ninety minutes." 

Nick nodded and took the list from Tuesday. Scribbled in her chicken scratchy handwriting were the following names:

Abby Lockheart

John Carter

Robert Romano

"How do you want me to find out about these people?" Nick asked, looking up. 

Tuesday shrugged. "That's your job. Get files from Romano, except his own and ask Dr. Elizabeth Corday about Romano. Corday is the assistant chief of surgery. She might know more about him. Snoop around. That's our job isn't it?" She grinned. 

"Like a modern Sherlock Holmes novel, isn't it?" Nick posed as the elevator slid silently open. 

"That's right. And the game is afoot." 

The two bid goodbye as Nick remained in the elevator and Tuesday walked down the hall to Dr. Legaspi's office. She knocked on the door and was greeted by a pleasant voice. 

"Miss Haskle? Come in." 

Tuesday walked in shyly, reminded of going to see the counselor in high school. 

"Sit down." 

Tuesday obliged, and wrung her hands nervously. "I hope this isn't an inconvenience..." 

"Oh, no. Kerry has told me about how you came half way across the country to find on of her doctors. What is the problem?" 

"Well... I was urged by a few co-workers to seek treatment, after an event the other day, the night I got into Chicago," Tuesday began, not sure what to say. 

"What happened?" 

Suddenly, Tuesday found herself pouring out the entire story of the terrible night, explaining details as if she had just experienced them then and there. 

Dr. Legaspi nodded. "A classic anxiety attack. You mentioned something about your boyfriend in Boston. What happened?" 

"I was dating another CSI when I was working in Boston... At first, it seemed that we were made for each other, soul mates. But then he got scary. He would come home drunk, and sometimes really angry. He would take it out on me. I told him that I couldn't put up with it anymore, and left. I even relocated to a smaller division of the BPD, but he followed me. He threatened my life one evening when he got really drunk. He meant to shoot me in the head, but got my shoulder blade instead. I was in the hospital for a while, and when I got out I moved to Las Vegas. That didn't stop him though. He started a string of gruesome serial killings in Vegas, intent on finally killing me. He eluded us for months because he was a CSI too and had seen plenty of cases and knew how to not leave evidence. He almost got me again, but was busted and now is in the Nevada State Prison. 

"I never had these attacks before, I don't know what set them off..." 

Dr. Legaspi, who had been sitting in silence during Tuesday's tragic tale nodded again. Tuesday began to wonder if psychiatrists took special classes on nodding. 

"I think your attack was spurned from the stress of having to take a case you didn't want and that you had to fly to Chicago." 

"How did you know I didn't want the case?" 

"I like to research my new patients." 

"Oh. Well?" 

Dr. Legaspi smiled. "You just need a few more sessions. If it is at all possible, maybe you could come in here once more before you go back to Las Vegas and try to see someone in Vegas." 

Tuesday smiled. "So this isn't really weird is it?" 

"Of course not! Quite normal for someone who has gone through what you have." 

Tuesday thanked Dr. Legaspi and left for Navy Pier. 

-----

"I was wondering when you would get here," Tuesday said, holding a hot dog out to Nick. "Your hot dog was getting cold." 

"You won't be too upset when you see what I found," Nick countered, joining Tuesday on the park bench and took the hot dog from her hand. "What did Legaspi say?" 

"That's private, buster" Tuesday exclaimed. "Now tell me what you found." 

"Well, first of all, Abby was in medical school for about a half year. Her husband, or ex-husband I should say, was supposed to pay her tuition, but didn't so she had to go back to being a nurse. 

"Now, John Carter is one of the richest people in Chicago. He was stabbed in February of 2000, and afterwards sunk into a depression and eventually drug addiction. 

"And finally, Romano is involved in a huge scandal. It seems that he is responsible for firing several minorities from the staff of the hospital, which included homosexuals, Hispanics, blacks, and Jews." 

Tuesday sat in silence for a while, broodingly chewing on her hot dog. Finally she spoke. "I think I know who done it." She explained her theory to Nick who concurred. 

"That might just work." 

Tuesday's cell phone rang. "Hello?" 

"Tuesday. I though you might want to know this," Sara said, her voice marred by static. "We found Dr. Kovac."


	6. The Politics of Cook County General

:VI:

:VI:

The Politics of Cook County General

The entire ER staff sat in a meeting room. Tuesday and Nick stood at the front, a tape player and several tapes sitting on a table in front of them. 

"Dr. Kovac has been found," Tuesday said in a hollow voice. 

"Where?" Kerry asked. 

"In a autopsy drawer in the Las Vegas CSI offices. Luka Kovac is dead and his body was slipped into the coroner's office during the night of May 15th." 

Several gasps filtered through the room and Abby's eyes filled with tears. 

"However, we also know who is responsible for Dr. Kovac's death," Nick said. "Tuesday, take the floor." 

"Thank-you." Tuesday stepped forward. "This story begins long before Dr. Kovac's disappearance. Correct Abby?" 

Abby's eyes flashed dangerously. "What the hell are you talking about?" 

Tuesday smiled. "In September, your husband quit paying your tuition to medical school, forcing you to drop out. Is that correct?" 

"Yes," Abby muttered, her eyes narrowing. 

"You wanted nothing else but to go to medical school. But, your revenue inhibited you from actually doing anything about it. 

"Meanwhile, Dr. Romano found himself moving into quite a situation. After firing several members of the hospital staff, the hospital board of trustees began to look into the cases of these people. And, it was discovered that every single one of these people were some sort of minority. Homosexual, Hispanic, African American, Native American, Jewish..." 

"You can't prove anything!" Romano fired, glaring at Tuesday. 

Tuesday's expression was almost brash. She truly loved playing the part of the devil's advocate. "I can, Dr. Romano, I can." She held up several tapes. "Each of these contain the testimonies of the those who lost their jobs. You can that the board for these, we borrowed them from the CEO." 

Romano's red face paled and he glared at Tuesday. He tried to speak, but couldn't. 

"You knew that Abby was hard pressed for money and you were made uncomfortable by Dr. Kovac's presence in the ER. You wanted him gone, but knew if you tried to fire him, you would lose your own job faster then you could fire someone else. So you played your trump card. You promised Abby you would pay for her tuition if she got rid of Luka. 

"So, Abby, you followed Luka to Vegas and kidnapped him from the MGM Grand. But, when you returned to Chicago, your conscience got the better of you and you called me. Classic, really. The culprit calls in the detectives and acts so worried. In your case, Abby the worry was genuine. You truly loved Luka and you worried about him. You began to rethink all of this. 

"Romano was getting into even deeper water with the board. They refused to be silent any longer. That is, most of the board. You talked to the CEO and promised him one and a half million dollars if he kept quiet. And he did. The only problem was that you didn't have the money. You barely had the money to cover your promise to Abby. So you arranged for the kidnap of John Carter, knowing he had millions of dollars. All it would take was a ransom. At that same time, you arranged for Luka to be killed in Vegas, because you were afraid that Abby might break." Tuesday finished and sat down, Nick taking her place. 

"You have no proof!" 

Nick smiled slyly. "Oh no?" He signaled to Tuesday who in turn flipped on the tape player. 

"You do, an I will see to it that Kovac never sees you or anyone again." 

Tuesday hit the stop button and the voice was cut off. Another wave of gasps passed through the room. 

"Abby Lockheart, you are under arrest for the kidnap of Luka Kovac. Robert Romano, you are under arrest for the murder of Luka Kovac and the kidnap of John Carter." 

Two police officers entered the room, handcuffed the two and led them from the room. Nick and Tuesday sighed and exchanged a glance. 

-----

Tuesday slammed the case record file shut and leaned back in her chair, putting her feet on her desk. 

"Can I come in?" 

Tuesday looked up to see Catherine standing in the doorway. "Sure." She sighed. "It's great to be back home," she said. 

"You and Nick made the papers," Catherine said handing the paper to Tuesday. There in bold print read: 

VEGAS CSIs CRACK CHICAGO KIDNAPPINGS

Tuesday sighed. "I'm glad it's all over. That hospital is just weird." 

"Did you see anyone about your attack?" 

Tuesday nodded. "Twice in Chicago and I'm going to see someone here for a couple weeks." 

Catherine smiled. "That's great. Good luck." 

"Thanks." Tuesday winked. "I couldn't have done any of it without friends like your guys." 

~*~ EL FIN ~*~

----------------------------------------------------------------------------

What did you think? Was it everything you hoped it would be? E-mail me at [kovacsgirl@yahoo.com][1] and check out my website: [http://www.geocities.com/chicago_kewlkat][2]

   [1]: mailto:kovacsgirl@yahoo.com
   [2]: http://www.geocities.com/chicago_kewlkat



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